Tag Archives: Goals

Children are like wet cement. Whatever falls on them makes an impression.

— Haim Ginott

A few years ago, we were vacationing for two weeks. At the end of the first day, we were thoroughly enjoying ourselves. The weather was great, the coastline was beautiful and meals were delicious. However, there was one big problem.

Your life is the sum result of all the choices you make, both consciously and unconsciously. If you can control the process of choosing, you can take control of all aspects of your life. You can find the freedom that comes from being in charge of yourself.

— Robert Bennett

Every single day of our lives, we are faced with a barrage of spending decisions. Sometimes it can be almost overwhelming. Are we in control of our spending? Or is our spending in control of us? Even those of us who do not feel like we are “out of control” nonetheless often feel like our spending decisions are not always explainable. Why do we say “yes” to certain purchases one month and then “no” to the same purchases the next month? Why do our choices on some occasions seem almost arbitrary?

High achievement always takes place in the framework of high expectations.

— Charles Kettering

In the first part of this series on budgeting, we discussed the importance of starting the budget process by looking at the big picture. Now let us try to bring those lofty ideals down to earth. When we asked ourselves significant questions about life (listed in the previous article), we found that some of the things that were important to us were the follwing.

Budgeting awakes many negative associations. No wonder that one-third of people do not budget at all and two-third say they are unsuccessful at budgeting. Household budgeting often stands for fantasy, guiltiness, irrelevance or negativity.

Starbucks CoffeeYesterday we were reading one typical blog post where someone discussed how he had exit the consumerism. As proof, the blogger does not purchase daily morning coffee at Starbucks for €4 like his colleagues anymore. The article was mainly about how the money saved from not buying coffee will produce gobs of money that will eventually enable him to retire early. Is this the right way to think about delayed spending?

Starting Point
To be financial independent, you must accumulate wealth to let is work for you. Obvious way to do this is to save money by spending less money than you earn. That is not the only way to do so (eventually not even the best way). But, it is the most straightforward method. Based on that, main focus should be on income.

Some Lovely Thoughts
Unusual people live economically, below their means, work hard, save bulks of their income and pursue financial independence aggressively with a sophisticated investment strategy. However, other people work and spend their money for expensive new cars or nice watches. They are not able to build up net worth, sacrifices are too large because of binding habits and social conventions. So, does economical living makes people really free?

Welcome to Eternal Yield! Thank you for coming by. Please share you thoughts and comments with us and have a good time. You will find here short pointy businesslike stock evaluations, which are in line with our long-term buy-and-hold strategy. This blog lives through critiscm, so we encourage readers to comment (anonymous also possible). Today we get started with a story about the relationship between capital and time.

The Parable of the Mexican FishermanA boat docked in a tiny Mexican village. An American tourist complimented the Mexican fisherman on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took him to catch them. “Not very long,” answered the Mexican. “But then, why didn’t you stay out longer and catch more?” asked the American. The Mexican explained that his small catch was sufficient to meet his needs and those of his family. The American asked, “But what do you do with the rest of your time?” “I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, and take a siesta with my wife. In the evenings, I go into the village to see my friends, have a few drinks, play the guitar, and sing a few songs … I have a full life.”

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